Page 220 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL FALL 2021 DISCOVERING SANTA FE

leaning blindly over the side in an effort to touch a them, and we were able to pet them. Over the
portion of skin as slippery as wet rubber. Unable to years, I've seen them become much more con-
gage my reach, I stroked the baleen’s head until I scious of our presence, demonstrating a purpose-
felt my fingers sink into a soft cavity. I pulled away ful desire to interact with us.”
with a start: Had I penetrated its blow hole? His words dissipated over Enya’s music and the
Would the majestic animal object to this tactile in- distant sound of crashing waves. “This from a
trusion into its nasal opening? Apparently not. The species that we almost wiped off the face of the
glistening body jutted out of the water, affording earth. I believe they remember their history. Now
us a close up of a skin covered in parasitic barna- that they know they are safe, they chose to inter-
cles as numerous as stars in a night sky. act with us.”
“Barnacles might explain why they like to slip As if on cue, mother and baby faded into the
under a panga to “scratch” their back against the deep and the safety of their aquatic “home.” As for
hull,” explained Mike. Barnacles, along with whale us, time was up. Other pangas appeared in the dis-
lice, are the two main aquatic freeloaders to hitch tance ready to take our place during strictly-regu-
a ride on the backs of gray whales, he continued. lated visiting hours.
The “friendly” quickly disappeared into the depths “I have arranged for another visit with the
with the flick of its flukes. Like us, Mike, a frequent friendlies tomorrow morning,“ Mike announced as
visitor to these waters, was thrilled at the human/ we boarded our van. “You’ll get to meet them up
animal interaction. close again.” Like my fellow travelers, I couldn’t
He demonstrated his unconventional method to wait to resume our experience.
coax a “friendly” back to the surface: A colony of dozing sea lions napped in the sun on
“I swear they love Enya!” he said, fiddling with a large buoy. Not one lifted its head as we chugged
his cell phone. “I’ve been doing this for 20 years! past. Clearly, Enya wasn’t their musical style.
This really works!” Petting the whales had awakened everyone’s ap-
The aquatic creatures remain in acoustic con- petite. We returned to terra firma for an early
tact with other baleens and use a variety of sounds lunch at Guerrero Negro’s famous Tacos El Muelle,
including singing, moaning and short pulses. Could and the freshest fish tacos in town.
this be why Enya sounded like music to their The next morning, after an equally lively en-
“ears?” counter with “friendlies,” Mike pointed the van in-
As Mike predicted, another cetacean swam on land. “Time to head northwards to Meling Ranch in
its side and gave us a one-eyed once over. The the Sierra San Pedro Martir,” he announced. “My
baleen’s mouth opened just long enough to expose contact there tells me there’s still snow on the
a comb like “strainer” made up of rows of flexible ground!”
white keratin plates which it uses as filters while
ingesting gargantuan amounts of krill and sedi- Kitty Morse, author, publisher
ments. This time, our friendly wasn’t alone. She
seemed to “nudge” her newborn closer to our https://www.kittymorse.com
panga. Le Riad au Bord de l'Oued
“This is probably the baby’s first human en- https://www.amazon.com/kindle/dp/
counter,” said Mike, leaning over the side to cap- B07YYLJX2K/ref=rdr_kindle_ext_eos_detail
ture the scene. Other early risers in a neighboring Mint Tea and Minarets: A Banquet of Moroccan
panga pointed their binoculars in our direction. Memories
“Decades ago, our interactions with the Pacific Best Book/Arab Cuisine/USA
Gray Whale were more as observers” explained Gourmand World Cookbook Awards
Mike. “We had occasional "close encounters" with Te Kasbah Chronicles newsletter

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